The optimal approach of various analysis methodologies of a dual-purpose solar collector

Abstract The present study uses three mathematical approaches to analyze the dual-purpose solar collector, making it a novel contribution. Three MATLAB codes (C1, C2, and C3), each with its mathematical model, are developed. The effectiveness- number of transfer unit method is used in C1. The heat removal term is used in C2. In C3, the effectiveness term of the parallel flow heat exchanger is used. Mathematical modeling, simulation, and experimental validation are conducted for each code. The calculated numerical-experimental errors revealed excellent convergence. The root mean square error and the mean absolute error for C3 are 1.8 and 1.5, respectively, which are less than for C2 and C3. This indicates that C3 is a reliable approach and can assist researchers in future analysis of the dual-purpose solar collector.